Shamanism and nature worship
To the orcs, tauren, night elves, trolls and draenei the world is alive with spirits dancing on the edge of perception. Everything that has ever lived owns a unique and enduring spirit, an essential spark that calls out to all the other lives in the world. The shamanic and druidic races do not dismiss the Holy Light that the humans prize, but they understand that the light comes from countless myriads of brightly shining points. In a rush to embrace the all, shamans agree, humans quite literally miss the point. Shamans and druids are puzzled by goblins, who profess many of the same ideals but do so in a "thank the spirits while you get on to important stuff with gears" fashion. The goblins' casual attitude toward spirits can be very frustrating to the spiritual mind. Druidism Kal'dorei Night elves take a personal approach to their spirit relationships. They recognize each spirit that they encounter as an individual life and persuade or honor them as the occasion demands. They interact mostly with the spirits of nature and do so primarily concerning matters in the immediate vicinity of the spirit with whom they are dealing. When greater matters are at stake, night elves entreat nature deities, a pantheon of greater spirits that represent especially important parts of the night elves' world and many of who are known as the Ancients. The Moon Goddess Elune and her son Cenarius are examples of greater spirits (though Elune is no Ancient, but apparently a true goddess). While rare, High Elven (Quel'dorei) druids apparently do exist. It is unknown whether half-Quel'dorei druids exist, despite the large settlements of such folk in the joint High Elven-Human state in Kalimdor and their existence in Quel'thalas. If there are half-elves among the Sin'dorei, it has not been revealed. Tauren Though the Tauren teach that Cenarius instructed them first in Druidism, as recounted in their myth Forestlord and the First Druids, it was in fact Malfurion Stormrage who was the first mortal druid. While it is a change from their traditional path to the spirits, it is a natural one and has found a very 'natural' home in the societies of Mulgore, even among puritanically xenophobic movements such as the Grimtotem. This comfort is aided by the identification of ancient spirits revered by the Tauren with known Ancients and their parallel reverence for a single goddess, the Earthmother. Shamanism Outsiders, as well as those new to the Horde, refer to the tauren’ and orcs’ spiritual beliefs as “shamanistic,” as if one word encompasses all the nuances and branches of a complex philosophy. In truth, the spiritual path dubbed shamanism that the orcs and tauren follow encompasses many different beliefs. The orcs and tauren hold differing opinions on the value of each belief. The main tenets of shamanism as practiced in Azeroth are ancestor worship, animism and spirit guidance. Some faiths include the belief in the Earth Mother. About Shaman Magic The following conversations are from ''Lord of the Clans, written by Christie Golden, copyright 2001 by Blizzard Entertainment. While it has little or nothing to do with gameplay, certain people may find it of interest, particularly if they wish to roleplay. First, a conversation between Thrall and Grom Hellscream, where Grom tells the younger orc more of shamanistic magic.... '''THRALL: ' Isn't magic magic? GROM: '''Yes and no. Sometimes the effect is the same. For instance, if a shaman was to summon lightning to strike his foes, they would be burned to death. If a warlock was to summon hell's flames against an enemy, they would be burned to death. '''THRALL: '''So magic is magic. '''GROM: '''But lightning is a natural phenomenon. You call it by requesting it. With hell's fire, you make a bargain. It costs a little of yourself. '''THRALL: '''But you said that the shamans were disappearing. Doesn't that mean that the warlock's way was better? '''GROM: The warlock's way was quicker, more effective, or so it seemed. But there comes a time when a price must be paid, and sometimes, it is dear indeed. This could explain why Hellfire hurts Warlocks, and Soulshatter. The most well-known price the orcs paid for their use of demonic magic is chronicled in the entry entitled Lethargy of the Orcs. ---- The next conversation is between Thrall and Drek'Thar of the Frostwolf Clan..... DREK'THAR: The wolves are not tamed, not as you might understand the word. They have come to be our friends because I invited them. It is a part of being a shaman. We have a bond with the things of the natural world, and strive always to work in harmony with them. DREK'THAR: Warlocks would term them spells, but we shamans simply term them calls. We ask, the powers we work with answer. Or not, as they will. (said while he explained shamanism to Thrall.) DREK'THAR: I can call the snows, and wind, and lightning. The trees may bend to me when I ask. The rivers may flow where I ask them to. THRALL: 'If your power is so great, then why do you continue to live in such a harsh place? If what you are saying is true, you could turn this barren mountaintop into a lush garden. Food would never be difficult to come by, your enemies would never find you-- '''DREK'THAR (angrily): '''And I would violate the primary agreement with the elements, and nothing of nature would ever respond to me again! Do you understand nothing? Have the humans sunk their greedy talons in you so deeply that you cannot see what lies at the heart of a shaman's power? I am granted these things because I '' ask '', with respect in my heart, and I am willing to offer something in return. I request only the barest needs for myself and my people. At times, I ask great things, but only when the cause is good and just and wholesome. In return, I thank these powers, knowing they are borrowed only, never bought. They come to me because they choose to, not because I demand it! These are not slaves, Thrall. They are powerful entities who come of their own free will, who are companions in my magic, not my servants. Pagh! You will never understand. ---- It appears from Rise of the Horde that Shaman used to be able to commune with the dead. In one of the chapter "prologues" Thrall says: I am one of the second wave of shaman, just as I am the leader of the second, and I pray better and wiser incarnation of the Horde. I have spoken with the elements and spirits, and I have felt them working in harmony with me many times, and refusing their aid almost as often. But I have never seen the spirits of the ancestors, not even in my dreams; my soul yearns for such a connection. Until very recently, those who once walked the path of the shaman did not even dream of being able to walk it again, and yet they do. Perhaps one day the barriers between us and the beloved dead, too, will be lifted. Perhaps. Shamanistic Philosophy ''Everything that is, is alive Note that all shaman gain their power from the Elemental Spirits, so most shamanic philosophy is the same no matter which race practices it. Previously, it was thought that the rigid disciplines of the Holy Light were incompatible with shamanism, but the recent advent of the Draenei Shamans proves that the Spirits are not so different from the Light. Shamans gain access to their power through contract, not bargain. For this reason they refer to the act of using their magic as 'calls' rather than 'spells', since it is a power that is asked rather than taken. '''Shamanism is a range of traditional beliefs and practices that involve the ability to diagnose, cure, and sometimes cause suffering by traversing the axis mundi and forming a special relationship with, or gaining control over, spirits. Shamans have been credited with the ability to control the weather, divination, the interpretation of dreams, astral projection, and traveling to upper and lower worlds. Shamanic traditions have existed throughout the world since prehistoric times. Shamanism is based on the premise that the visible world is pervaded by invisible forces or spirits that affect the lives of the living. In contrast to animism and animatism, which any and usually all members of a society practice, shamanism requires specialized knowledge or abilities. Shamans are not, however, organized into full-time ritual or spiritual associations, as are priests. The Spirits The shamans call upon the Elements in their magic. There are five elements, or Spirits: Earth, Air (also Wind), Fire, Water and the Wilds. At their simplest, the elements may cause an earthquake, summon a storm, conjure fire or finding water. As their most complex, the elements are the very world we live in. The Spirit of the Wilds is the most complex and least understood of the elements. This element is tied to life and the living things that grow when the other four elements are in harmony. The Spirit is theoretically capable of restoring the dead to life, but no true shaman would ever call upon that - to violate the boundaries of life and death is to deny the very lessons of the Spirits. Shaman Types *Battle shaman *Far Seer. Shamans by Race *Shaman races The following races in Azeroth are Shamanic. * Draenei * Furbolgs * Orcs * Ogres * Tauren * Trolls * Wildhammer Dwarves Orcs and tauren traditionally took a more symbolic approach. The spirits they encountered on the wild plains of Kalimdor (and originally on the Nagrand Grasslands on the orc homeworld of Draenor) are less specific, cover a wider range and are tied to the four elements: earth, air, fire and water. Shamans carve representative imagery on totems and draw power from acting in a particular spirit's name. This relationship provides them with great power - but little spiritual comfort. For such comfort, shamans look to their own culture's ancestors and traditions. Tauren Tauren look to the spirits of their ancestors and a pantheon of named spirits for such guidance. Every tauren learns to recite his lineage at an early age - an impressive feat, given that most tauren family trees go back at least ten generations. Tauren tell many tales of their ancestors, and most tauren establish a strong bond with one or two of their forebears. A tauren lives his life in honor of these favored ancestors, doing great deeds in their name and meditating on their adventures for guidance in the choices of life. Like the Kal'dorei, Tauren also revere important spirits, many of whom have been identified as members of the Night Elf pantheon. Chief among them is the Earthmother, who plays a role as central as that of Elune to Tauren society (despite the lack of a priesthood). The tauren myth The White Stag and the Moon tells of the birth of Cenarius from the union of the moon, Mu'sha (Elune), and the white stag Apa'ro (Malorne).http://www.wow-europe.com/en/info/encyclopedia/350.xml. Orcs Since their corruption by the Burning Legion, orcs do not share the steady religious faith of tauren and night elves. (The only known uncorrupted orcs are the brown-skinned Mag'har, who still reside in Nagrand.) They are only now learning to accept their old traditions again. The Burning Legion's corrupting influence drew them away from their ancestral traditions and most of their spirit knowledge was lost. Having thrown off the Burning Legion's dominance, orcs must relearn how to communicate with the spirits. Nonetheless, even the orcs of Azeroth continued to revere their ancestors and heroes. Some lore is preserved in epic tales and children's stories; an orc that remembers his granddame's fables may draw on that insight when dealing with the spirit world. Orc shamans are back on good terms with many ancestral and nature spirits, and they are reintroducing their people to the natural world with prayer, lodge sweats and vision quests, many of which are traditions imported from the Tauren. Darkspear Trolls The Island Trolls of the Darkspear tribe - the only troll full members of the Horde - have also embraced shamanism. They have learned the path of elemental power along with the orcs and their paths are almost identical. However, troll traditions have survived - albeit with some changes, such as the new equality of women and the abandonment of cannibalism - and trolls continue to follow the path of their ancestors as charted by their spiritual leaders, the witch doctors and heroes. Draenei The Draenei first encountered shamans when they arrived on the Orc homeworld as refugees from the Burning Legion's corruption. However, despite considerable traffic with the ancient orc peoples, shamanism remained an alien tradition to them. This would change with the fallout of the arrival of the Burning Legion - fel-corrupted Draenei known as the Broken and the Lost Ones were separated from the main body of the uncorrupted eredar. These fel-corrupted folk were unable to tap into the power of the Light that was an intrinsic power of the uncorrupted Draenei, and felt lost and abandoned. However, all was not lost. The Broken spiritual seeker Nobundo underwent a wandering in the wilderness, and after a long period, he heard the voices of the elements - specifically, the Wind - speaking to him. (This experience is parallel to a Tauren or Azerothian orcish vision quest, but was a simple act of spontaneous desperation by Nobundo rather than a learned tradition.) Nobundo became a shaman and eventually shared his power with the uncorrupted Draenei leader Velen. Now known as Farseer Nobundo, he is the second spiritual leader of the Draenei. His subordinate teachers include a furbolg shaman and new Broken and Uncorrupted Draenei trainees. (Note that the term "draenei" means "exiled" and refers to eredar descended from those who fled the corruption of their species at the hands of Sargeras and the proper term for the player race "draenei" is Uncorrupted Draenei; redeemed Broken are also classed as draenei.) Still, shamans are viewed with a great deal of distrust by many Uncorrupted as it is not a practice of the Holy Light and stemmed from the teachings of one cut off from the light by Fel taint. Other Groups Other humanoids that follow the shamanic path are centaur, ogres, furbolg and quilboar. The last species is notable for its reverence of the martyred Ancient boar-divinity Agamaggan, who they prophecy will rise again as the champion of the quilboar. Notes *A good source of information about Horde shamanism in Warcraft can be found in the book Lord of the Clans. The book discusses their core philosophies of shamanism, as where their power comes from. *163, 176, 177, 178, 179, 180 Category:Lore Category:Druids Category:Shamans Category:Religions Category:Lore